Page 88 of Innocent Prey of the Bratva

The words hang in the air, weighty and sharp.

My heart thunders in my chest. I’ve thought it. I’ve felt it. But I’ve never said it out loud until now. Not even to him. And hearing myself say it, hearing the word love—it’s like a crack running through the center of me, letting everything pour out.

I don’t know when it happened. Maybe it was the first night he looked at me like I wasn’t just a pawn. Or the way he holds me like I’m the only thing anchoring him to this world. Or maybe it was the pain in his eyes when he had to lock me away to keep me safe. But it’s there. It’s real.

I love him.

I feel my throat tighten, my eyes burn, but I blink the tears back.

Niko watches me carefully now, no longer amused. There’s something new in his gaze—something closer to respect. Or maybe understanding.

I’m about to walk away from his intense gaze when my burner phone rings. The shrill, unfamiliar sound slices through the silence, jolting me back into my body. I stare at it in disbelief. That phone doesn’t receive calls. It’s not supposed to. It’s a one-way line.

My hands tremble as I pick it up.

Noelle.

My chest tightens. “Girl, how’s your call coming in? Is this a glitch or—?”

Her voice crackles through, distorted, like it’s dragging itself through static and fire. I frown and put it on speaker.

“Noelle? What’s going on?”

Through the broken static, I hear her voice barely breaking through, panicked, garbled:

“—et out. He doesn’t know—Arina—watching—”

I freeze.

“What?” I shout. “Noelle! Say that again!”

But the line is already crumbling, slipping through my fingers like sand.

“Noelle! Noelle, talk to me!”

Nothing.

The call drops.

I immediately redial—but the number is unreachable. Again. And again. A robotic voice keeps repeating the same thing.

Panic tightens like a rope around my lungs. My hands are shaking now. She said something about Arina watching, and I’m more shocked at how she knows Arina. What exactly is Noelle into?

“Who was that?” Niko asks, eyes narrowing on me.

But I don’t answer.

I bolt.

My heart’s hammering in my chest as I tear through the halls, ignoring the guards and the weight of my own panic. I need to find Kaz. Now. I don’t knock when I reach his door—I just barge in.

He’s inside, pulling a shirt over his head, but the moment he sees me, his expression shifts from mild surprise to instant concern.

“Violet?”

“What are you not telling me?” I shout, my voice cracking. “Kaz, what the hell is going on?”

He steps toward me like he’s going to explain something—maybe—but then he just wraps his arms around me and kisses me.